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Thursday, May 21, 2015

Vatican City, 21 May 2015 (VIS) –
This morning in the Paul VI Hall the Holy Father received in audience
six hundred relatives of members of the State Police gravely injured
in killed in service, and thanked them for their witness of Christian
hope and for their faithfulness to institutions and to a mission that
“demands the courage of helping those in danger and stopping the
aggressor”. Society as a whole, he added, “is indebted to you for
the possibility of conducting an orderly life, free of the arrogance
of the violent and the corrupt”.

“Those who, day after day, take on
the seriousness and commitment of their profession and place
themselves at the disposal of the community, and especially those who
are in danger or find themselves in situations of grave difficulty,
'go forth' to their neighbours and serve. Acting in this way, they
live their life, even in the eventuality of losing it, as Jesus did,
dying on the Cross. Only by contemplating Jesus on the Cross can we
find the strength to forgive and the consolation that our crosses too
will redeem His; therefore, every sacrifice and every tragedy will
find redemption in Him”, affirmed the Holy Father.

“The witness of Christian values is
even more eloquent in our times, in which the generous zeal of so
many is not often accompanied by the capacity to channel it in a
coherent and constant way. In our times, evidently, it proves easier
to commit oneself to something temporary or partial. On the contrary,
the work of the Police force requires something solid in time and,
although contingent situations change, there is a constant in all
ages: that of guaranteeing legality and order for all citizens,
allowing us to reap the benefits”.

The Pope also remarked that during
recent years the police have carried out decisive action in managing
the impact of the flow of refugees arriving in Italy, seeking refuge
from wars and persecution. “You are on the front line both in the
initial reception of immigrants, and in counteracting unscrupulous
traffickers. In this task … you are distinguished by your spirit of
service and humanity, motivated not only by the law but first and
foremost by the moral imperative to do good, to save as many people
as possible and to spare no energy or time in this commitment”.

“Be proud of your work and continue
to serve the state, every citizen and every person in danger. In
defending the weak and the law you will find the truest meaning of
your service and will be an example to the country, which needs
people who serve it with altruism, and generosity and constancy”.

Vatican City, 21 May 2015 (VIS) –
This morning a press conference was held in the Holy See Press Office
to present the second International Conference on Women (22-24 May,
ex Domus Pacis, Rome) organised – like the first Conference held in
2009 – by the Pontifical Council “Justice and Peace”, in
collaboration with the World Union of Catholic Women's Organisations
(WUCWO) and the World Women's Alliance for Life and Family (WWALF).
The theme of the conference will be “Women and the post-2015
development agenda - the challenges of the Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs)”. The conference will be attended by over a hundred
participants – mostly women, but to a lesser extent also men –
from diverse cultural and social contexts and from all five
continents, and will aim to offer the most complete overview possible
of the main issues that affect women throughout the world in our
times.

The speakers at the conference were
Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, president of the Pontifical
Council “Justice and Peace”; Flaminia Giovanelli, under-secretary
of the same dicastery; Olimpia Tarzia, president of the WWALF, and
Maria Giovanni Ruggieri, president of the WUCWO.

Cardinal Turkson explained that the
first day, 22 May, will begin with an analysis of female anthropology
in the context of modern culture, which will also seek to shed light
on recent and increasingly incisive semantic changes in terms of
reference. The second panel will focus on the theme of education and
the role of women in this field, as well as “the alliance between
men and women and their mutual respect … in order to combat
violence and abuse of power”. The cardinal emphasised that
“education is an essential resource for ensuring the right to life,
which is still denied in some parts of the planet where the birth of
a female child is seen as a misfortune, since the sole destiny of a
woman is an arranged marriage for which the family is required to
provide a dowry”.

Another theme is interreligious
dialogue as a path towards lasting peace, and the role of women in
this context. “The many episodes in recent times in which women and
girls have been victims of unspeakable atrocities involving sexual
violence, also and above all due to their Christian faith, are an
important challenge to us. Such episodes demand that we intensify
interreligious dialogue and appeal to our shared human nature, that
transcends all religions and cultures, to forcefully condemn such
atrocities in order to protect those under threat”.

The second International Conference on
Women will also offer the opportunity to discuss the many old and new
forms of slavery and violence that affect women in various ways in
different parts of the world. While in the western world domestic
violence prevails and there is an increasing incidence of episodes of
so-called “femicide”, in other poorer areas of developing
countries the infanticide of female children and selective abortion
of female foetuses are widespread practices. Inspired by Pope
Francis' Message for Peace, the theme of which this year is “Slaves
no more, but brothers and sisters”, the Conference will denounce
the phenomenon of human trafficking which the Pontiff has on numerous
occasions described as a crime against humanity whose victims are,
for the most part, girls and women.

“While in many countries there has
certainly been significant progress in favour of women, especially in
the fields of education, political representation and economic
participation, much still remains to be done”, observed the
president of Justice and Peace, noting that it is true that poverty
continues to affect women disproportionately, and many women “have
no protection in many fields, including domestic, manufacturing and
agricultural work”.

However, the Conference does not intend
merely to provide an overview of the most urgent matters linked to
the conditions of women, or to be simply an opportunity to denounce
the violations of the dignity of women and their rights. It will also
endeavour to offer a contribution that may be useful within the
framework of current negotiations for the new agenda for post-2015
developments. Therefore, on the second day of the meeting, on
Saturday 23 May, working groups will focus on the main thematic areas
of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). “The question of women
is transversal and crucial in the majority of the current proposals
of the SDGs: women play a key role in the reduction of poverty,
hunger throughout the world, and education, and are also the
guardians of life in all its phases”.

- accepted the resignation from the
pastoral care of the archdiocese of Merida-Badajoz, Spain, presented
by Bishop Santiago Garcia Aracil upon reaching the age limit. He is
succeeded by Bishop Celso Moga Iruzubieta, coadjutor of the same
archdiocese.

- appointed Rev. Fr. Dominique Blanchet
as bishop of Belfort-Montbeliard (area 1,472, population 327,800,
Catholics 249,500, priests 73, permanent deacons 14, religious 36),
France. The bishop-elect was born in Cholet, France in 1966 and was
ordained a priest in 1999. He has served in a number of pastoral
roles in the diocese of Angers, France, including episcopal delegate
for youth pastoral ministry and parish priest. He is currently vicar
general of the diocese of Angers, moderator of the Curia,
administrator of the parish of Chalonnes-sur-Loire and parish priest
of the parish of Sts. Lazarus and Nicholas in Angers.